I'm sorry about the delay in getting this up. School is tough right now. It's extra long to make up for the wait. I hope you enjoy.
Reviews:
cerralgrey: Thank you so much.
Shadowstouch: Thanks a lot. I'm glad you like it. You're exactly right about Thanatos not being able to be there for Sirius all the time. That's where Paul is going to come in with both Percy and Sirius. Don't worry about me getting burned out, though. Writing is my stress relief.
"Yes, it is my dear," a man said from behind them. Sirius couldn't help but cringe at the fake French accent the man had. "And it is a power you shall unleash." Sirius turned around to face the man, correction, manticore. A small army of men, mercenaries, stood behind the manticore. "Isn't this just pairrr-fect?"
"Where are the skeletons?" Percy asked. "Sirius didn't kill them all."
The manticore eyed Sirius with its multi-colored eyes. "No, he did not. The Prince of Death, himself. What an honor." The manticore provided a mock-bow. "I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you, I do not need skeletons to win a battle."
"Can't say I'm all that disappointed," Sirius replied, shrugging. However nonchalant he appeared, though, he kept his hand tightly gripped around his pendent.
"You could join our side, little princeling," the manticore said, voice cold and mocking. "I'm sure Castellan would love to have you on our side."
Sirius felt his jaw clench, and he summoned Skía from the pendent. He raised the sword, holding it steady. Zoë and Percy each raised their own weapons.
"You should shut up now," Thalia said, spear also raised.
"Ah, Thalia," the manticore said. "This is your moment. This is why Lord Kronos brought you back to life. You will sacrifice the Ophiotaurus. You will bring its entrails to the sacred fire on the mountain. You will gain unlimited power. And for your sixteenth birthday, you will overthrow Olympus."
"Thalia!" Percy said. "Snap out of it!"
"I...I don't," Thalia stammered out.
Percy's eyes met first Grover's than Sirius'. Grover raised his pipe's to his mouth and began to play a quick riff. Vines climbed up over the men, clinging to them and keeping them in place. Sirius raised the hand not holding Skía. Shadows surged forth and climbed up the mercenaries as they began to pick the vines off of themselves. Zoë lifted her bow and shot two arrows. Sirius' nose wrinkled at the smell. Fart arrows.
Percy grabbed Thalia's arm and started to run. Grover mooed to the Ophiotaurus once before following. Sirius and Zoë followed closely behind. They could all clearly hear the angry shouts of the manticore as he gave chase.
Percy had cut the top off a fountain by the time Sirius caught up with him, letting water spurt everywhere, creating a rainbow. He was throwing in a drachma, calling out the camp's and Chiron's name. Mr. D appeared on the screen instead.
"What is it, Peter Johnson?" Mr. D asked crankily.
Percy tried his best to answer. Mr. D kept retorting with sassy comments.
"We're dead," Percy groaned.
"Then, we'll die fighting," Thalia said, raising her spear.
"How noble," Mr. D said, rolling his eyes snarkily. He stifled a yawn. "So, what exactly is the problem?"
Percy went on to explain as our enemies closed in around us. Sirius didn't pay any attention. He was far too busy watching the men close in around them. Sirius raised his sword. Grover and Thalia were pressed up on either side of him. Zoë was on Thalia's other side. The men were closing in. Sirius prepared himself to lunge forwards at the energy. He cringed at the thought of attacking mortals, but there was nothing to be done when they were coming after him and his friends.
A loud crack filled the air around them. Sirius' nose was filled with the scent of grapes and sour wine. The men started acting out, behaving insane. One man put his gun between his teeth and started crawling around like a dog. Another started dancing around the street with an invisible partner only he could see.
"No!" the manticore screamed, but he was covered in vines, disappearing beneath them.
"Well, that was fun," Mr. D said, his lips twitching ever-so-slightly.
"You just-" Sirius broke off. How could he even begin to describe this?
"It's not permanent, or course." Mr. D shrugged. "It'll wear off in a few hours. I suggest you be gone by then."
"But where do we go?" Percy asked. "And what about the Ophiotaurus."
"I don't transport livestock," Mr. D said. "And the girl over there knows where to go. You'll need to enter as the sun sets." With an arrogant sniff, Mr. D swiped his hand through the mist, dissipating the image.
"Where to now?" Sirius asked.
"We need to reach the Garden of the Hesperides," Zoë said. "Located on Mount Tamalpais. We will not make it in time, though."
"And we need to figure out what to do with the Ophiotaurus," Sirius added, nodding towards the cow serpent that had appeared in the ocean next to them.
"I have an idea," Grover said. He asked Percy about how the Ophiotaurus could jump bodies of water. It was decided that Grover would lead the creature back to Camp Half-Blood. As Grover climbed onto the Ophiotaurus' back, Percy sent a quick prayer to his father for a safe journey. 'Bessie' and Grover disappeared beneath the surface.
"Now, how do we get to the mountain?" Thalia asked.
"Can you Shadow Travel us, Sirius?" Percy asked.
"Not all four of us," Sirius sighed, shaking his head. "Our best bet would be one of those muggle things. A car, I think they're called."
Zoë looked at Sirius funny, but Thalia and Percy were both too busy thinking to bother with Sirius' minimalistic knowledge of the muggle world.
"Annabeth's dad," they both said together.
Sirius stared at the children in front of him awkwardly. Why did he think staying behind would be a good idea? Oh yeah, he was hungry and Mrs. Chase said she would feed him. This wasn't his quest, anyways. But what if something bad was happening? Percy could be dying right now. Sirius swallowed thickly. He didn't want to think about that.
"Can you say something else in British?" the youngest Chase boy, Bobby, asked. "Pretty please."
"There's no such thing as British," Sirius mumbled, blushing heavily. He had never met people so fixated on his accent. The Americans were the weird ones; not him. Gods, two hours with these children had annoyed him more than Snivellus and on of his Death Eater friends could within a whole day. Maybe, Sirius shouldn't have kids.
"Are you sure about this?" Mrs. Chase's voice filtered out from the kitchen where she and Dr. Chase were.
"I have to help Annabeth," Dr. Chase said to his wife.
"I know." There was a soft sigh. "Be safe, Frederick, and make sure Annabeth is safe too."
"I will," Dr. Chase replied. "I love you."
"Love you too."
The kitchen door swung open, and Dr. Chase walked into the living room. His eyes connected with Sirius'. Sirius could see the worry clearly. This man was clearly worried for his daughter. Sirius couldn't help but think if Sally Jackson was worried about him along with her real son. Or did she just feel bad for him?
"I'm going to get my daughter back," Dr. Chase said. "Will you come with me?"
"Yeah," Sirius said. "I'm worried sick about Percy, and I won't be able to relax until I see him safe in front of me. I'm coming."
"Us too!" Matthew and Bobby shouted.
"Absolutely not," Dr. Chase said. "You need to stay and help your mother keep guard over the house."
"Really?" Matthew asked dubiously.
"Of course," Sirius said. "You two need to help keep your mum safe from any stray monsters."
Matthew and Bobby nodded to each other before marching into the kitchen to join their mother. Dr. Chase sent Sirius a grateful look as the two stepped towards the door.
"I am never flying again!" Sirius shouted over the roar of the engine as the plane dive-bombed towards some monsters, shooting celestial bronze bullets at the army on top of the mountain.
His eyes scanned the ground. Zoë and a young girl were fighting a giant of a man. Percy was kneeling nearby them, struggling under the weight of what appeared to be a vortex. Annabeth was lying unconscious by his feet. What truly drew Sirius' eyes was Thalia. She was by the edge of a cliff, fighting Luke, and losing.
"Get me over there," Sirius yelled, pointing at Thalia and Luke.
Dr. Chase somehow managed to maneuver the plane so that it flew by the pair. Sirius inched open the passenger door and slid out, standing on the right wing of the plane. He shut the door and jumped. He stumbled a bit as he landed, but he managed to right himself just in time, summoning Skía from his pendent.
"Hey, Luke," Sirius shouted, running towards the blond boy.
Luke looked towards Sirius just long enough for Thalia to switch her position with the older boy's. Luke was now the one backed up against the cliff edge.
"Sirius," he said calmly, seemingly not worried by his newfound predicament. "Are you really sure this is what you want to be doing? Are you positive you're on the right side of the war?"
"Tais-toi, con,"(Shut up, prick) Sirius said. He could feel the tears filling up his eyes. This was war. Brothers turned against brothers. Could Sirius really hurt the boy he used to look up to, though?
"Oh, come on, Sirius," Luke goaded.
The blond swung his sword, and Sirius countered with his own. Both boys got lost in the motion of the deadly dance. They would swing, block, and duck, both in tune with one another's movements. Each boy was waiting for the other to mess up.
Sirius didn't see it coming when it happened. Luke feinted left, and Sirius fell for it. The other boy changed directions, though. Luke lunged at Thalia. Sirius dived for him, jumping in front of Thalia at the last possible second. The bronze and steel sword slid easily through Sirius' unguarded midsection. At first, none of the pain registered. It all came rushing in at once, swarming Sirius' senses. Black dots danced in front of his eyes. It hurt. Gods, it hurt so bad.
"No!" Thalia screeched.
Sirius was vaguely aware of someone shouting his name over and over in the background. The pain was ebbing away, Sirius assumed shock was setting in. Had Luke really just stabbed him? It appeared Luke couldn't seem to compute that either. He was staring at Sirius, horrified. His jaw hung wide open, and his eyes were bulging. He didn't notice Thalia lunging at him and knocking him over the edge of the cliff. Sirius felt sick. His vision was tunneling. Was this what it was like to die? The last thing Sirius saw was the brilliant stars in the sky. Not even at Hogwarts were they so bright.
"Dad?" Sirius groaned, blinking his eyes open.
"Don't move," Thanatos grunted. He rested a cool hand on his son's sweaty forehead. You're ill. There is only so much nectar and ambrosia your body can intake before you start to burn up. It appears you have just about reached your limit."
"Am I dying?"
"No." Thanatos gently rested a cool, wet flannel on Sirius' forehead. "You will live. It was close for awhile, but Apollo healed you well when you reached him. You just need to finish flushing the extra nectar from your system."
"'Kay," Sirius mumbled. He closed his eyes. "Love you, Dad."
"I love you too, Sirius," Thanatos said. He lifted the cloth and placed a gentle kiss on Sirius' forehead. "Sleep, now."